1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to export compliance and more specifically to streamlined compliance with cryptography export regulations.
2. Introduction
United States law provides controls on export of technology outside the geographical boundaries of the United States for the purposes of encryption. One of the purposes of such regulations is to protect sensitive technology from rogue or terrorist states. An example of such technology is encryption technology with a high degree of protection that can be used for military purposes. A known process involved in obtaining a patent on an invention is receiving approval from the United States Patent Office to send the disclosure to foreign patent offices for processing via an export control license received upon review of the application by the patent office. Another mechanism enables developers to do their own analysis and study the export compliance regulations with regard to encryption in an effort to identify whether an export license is needed. However, these rules are quite complicated and difficult to manage. New software is continuously being developed. In an Internet-connected worldwide market, software may be easily transmitted to servers or locations outside the United States.
Accordingly, what is needed in the art is an improved mechanism to enable a software developer to identify and determine if they are in compliance with governmental export regulations, and if not, to identify what else is needed to comply with applicable export laws and regulations.